It's with eager anticipation that I look forward to the return of Sly and the Family Stone. I mean, it's Sly! His Coachella festival appearance and forthcoming album sit well within the reunion trend. My hope is that Sly's return inspires musicians again. The noughties were an excellent time for Sly-spotting (after being out of the spotlight for decades – with only brief musical forays in the 80s and 90s). Could 2010 be the year when Stone returns to the limelight?

I remember his previous, brief re-emergence in 2006, when he jammed with musicians paying respect to his genius at the Grammys (complete with blond mohawk and lamé jumpsuit, no less). Sly was rumoured to be making a comeback, with reports that he had been writing songs for Michael Jackson. And then ... nothing.

In 2009, Sly seemed to be back in shape when he embarked on a world tour, with a brief and monumental live hook-up with George Clinton's own acid-funk carnival last September. The tour received mixed reviews, but I suspect his Coachella show will be a wild and fitting comeback. Plus, his new documentary, Higher, will be released later this year, only adding to the inevitable Sly mania.

After pondering all the Sly activity and his legacy (from inventing psychedelic funk and laying the groundwork for hip-hop, to inspiring the likes of Prince and Parliament) I asked myself: Who today would be a peer of Sly Stone? And then I hit on the answer: Will.i.am.

The Black Eyed Peas man is easily one of the successors to Sly Stone. For a start, his band are brilliant. They make use of the same multi-cultural pop template as Sly, and Will.i.am pulls the same tricks too – namely, he has message songs that don't feel like message songs. Look at the brilliant My Humps, which exposes sexual gratification and objectification in a titillating number that sits firmly in the funk canon.

Will.i.am has been pushing positive messages through his music since the beginning of his career and, like Sly, he's competitive. After all, what's the point of writing a positive-message song if nobody is going to hear it? The Banana Splits nature of Will.i.am's music only adds to its hyper intensity – underneath, the songs are cleverly pushing pop, funk and hip-hop forward. With hit after hit, Will.i.am's skills have been put to the test with Michael Jackson, Justin Timberlake and Pussycat Dolls.

As a producer, Will.i.am occupies the same eclectic role as Sly. He mixed psychedelia with funk, while Will.i.am brought the future of funk forward with The End, which I firmly believe is this generation's There's a Riot Going On. I welcome the re-emergence of Sly Stone, and look forward to exactly how he will continue the musical genius of Will.i.am.